Safe winter bathing at Olosauna

On the banks out of the Olou river in Finland lies Olosauna, a brand-new floating sauna that combines the Finnish sauna tradition with modern architecture. When Olosauna opened in the autumn of 2025, the Finnish cold set in faster and more intensely than expected. The bathing steps leading down to the ice bath quickly turned into a safety risk, despite the existing heating system installed during construction. To keep the stairs ice-free, customers safe and the sauna open, a fast and reliable solution was required. The choice fell on Ebeco’s heating mat Multimat, which effectively melts snow and ice.

Olosauna is a 500 m² floating facility where locals, tourists, and businesses can meet in a unique environment. This is not a spa facility with warm pools or advanced spa rituals. Instead, the concept is simple and genuinely Finnish. A large sauna, the opportunity for cold bathing in the river, a café, and a conference room. Olosauna is a place where people can gather, relax and enjoy the sauna.

Shortly after opening, the staff noticed that the extreme winter cold created challenges. When temperatures dropped to around – 20 °C, the existing heating system was no longer sufficient. Ice quickly formed on the bathing steps where guests walk directly from the ice bath’s cold water up onto the steps. The ice was considered a safety risk for guests, explains Armi Ruusuvirta, founder of Olosauna:

The steps must be safe for our guests in all condition. We realised that we had a very serious problem and needed fast help.

From the time the problem was identified until a solution was in place, only a few days passed. On a Friday evening, Olosauna contacted a Harri Siniaalto, sales representative at Ebeco. Already the following week, Ebeco’s Multimat was installed and operational on the bathing steps. Armi explains:

We needed help quickly, and we got it from Ebeco. It was a wow effect when Harri answered the phone despite it being a Friday evening. That’s when we immediately felt that Ebeco is a company that would be able to help us quickly with a solution.

Olosauna can now offer their customers a safe way down and up from the ice bath. In addition to increased safety, Multimat also contributes added comfort. When guests step out of the icy cold water, they are now met by stairs that feel pleasantly warm underfoot. It is simply a perfect solution for cold bathing, Armi concludes:

In the future, we would like to bring Olosauna to more locations. Ebeco’s Multimat will be a fast and flexible solution that we see will be an excellent fit also in future Olosaunas.